Empoli will be looking to end their eight-match winless run across all competitions when they take on Cagliari in an important Serie A fixture at the Carlo Castellani Stadium on Sunday evening with kickoff at 17:00.
Empoli continued their unfruitful start to 2022 as they picked up a 0-0 draw against Bologna in their last Serie A outing. They have now gone six matches without a win this year across all competitions picking up three draws and three defeats in the run.
However, the draw saw them move up one place to 11th in Serie A where they sit 12 points clear of the relegation zone and just two outside the top-half, which is really impressive for a newly-promoted outfit.
They have lost all their last three league matches on home soil heading into the match, but they have never lost four consecutive matches at home in their entire top-flight history and they will want to keep the record alive as they aim to bounce back to winning ways on Sunday. They beat Cagliari 2-0 away from home in September in their reverse fixture that should give them some confidence going into the match.
Meanwhile Cagliari made a poor start to the campaign this season and were in the relegation zone for most of the campaign. However, a run of three wins and a draw in their last five Serie A matches has brought some life in their campaign that appeared to be doomed in the first half of the season.
Walter Mazzarri’s side head into the match in high spirits thanks to their surprise 2-1 win away at Atalanta last weekend. The win was crucial for the visitors as it saw them climb out of the relegation zone for the first time since September and they now sit in 17th with two points above the bottom three.
Therefore Cagliari will be looking to climb further away from the drop zone with another positive result on Sunday and they will fancy their chances as they are in much better form than their hosts. Also their win against Atalanta at away is really a massive confidence booster.
Empoli vs Cagliari head to head
Both sides have met in 19 encounters since 1998 with Empoli claiming 10 victories while Cagliari have claimed six and there have been three draws.
- Cagliari 0-2 Empoli 22/09/21
- Cagliari 2-2 Empoli 20/01/19
- Empoli 2-0 Cagliari 19/08/18
- Cagliari 3-2 Empoli 14/05/17
- Empoli 2-0 Cagliari 17/12/16
Home
- Bologna 0-0 Empoli
- Empoli 2-4 Roma
- Inter 3-2 Empoli
- Venezia 1-1 Empoli
- Empoli 1-5 Sassuolo
Away
- Atalanta 1-2 Cagliari
- Cagliari 1-1 Fiorentina
- Sassuolo 1-0 Cagliari
- Roma 1-0 Cagliari
- Cagliari 2-1 Bologna
Empoli team news
Empoli will be without Nicolas Haas, Riccardo Marchizza and Sebastiano Luperto due to injuries.
Cagliari team news
Cagliari will be without Marko Rog, Sebastian Walukiewicz, Kevin Strootman and Damir Ceter due to injuries while Alessandro Deiola will miss due to suspension and Nahitan Nandez is a doubt.
Prediction and odds
- Cagliari win
- Draw
- Both sides to score
